Speaker 1 00:00:00 Hi all Jacob Austin here from QS.Zone and welcome to episode 85 of the Subcontractors Blueprint, the show where subcontractors will learn how to ensure profitability, improve cash flow and grow their business. Today's episode, number 85 is all about the Building Safety Act, which is the most sweeping construction safety law reform in decades. The actor was introduced in response to the Grenfell Tower tragedy and the subsequent Hackett Report, and it brings about fundamental changes to how we design, build and maintain buildings. Many of its key provisions kicked in in October 23rd, and if you're a subcontractor, particularly one involved in design, then it will affect how you work because the rules of the game have changed. But don't worry, I'm here to break it down for you. And as ever, if you're new to the show, then welcome and please subscribe for more user friendly advice on all things subcontracting. So on the agenda for today's show, we're going to cover key duty holder roles, especially what the new statutory principal designer and principal contractor are and what responsibilities they carry.
Speaker 1 00:01:26 How this affects subcontractors. Some key points around higher risk buildings and commonplace compliance challenges, with hopefully, some practical tips and examples of how you can adapt, stay compliant and maybe even turn these into a competitive edge. So first off, a quick overview. The Building Safety Act 2022, known as BSA, is a landmark piece of legislation overhauling building safety regulation. It's active across England and it creates a new regulator, the Building Safety regulator, which is part of the HSC to oversee building safety and enforce compliance. And in fact, the actor is being called the most fundamental reform in living memory for construction and housing safety. So this is a pretty big deal. It transforms how buildings are planned, constructed, managed and aims to prevent disasters like Grenfell from happening again. So the act itself received royal assent in April 2022, but it wasn't an overnight switch and different provisions have been phased in over time. The full new regime took effect from the 1st of October 23, and that is when many of the new regulations and requirements became live.
Speaker 1 00:02:45 And we'll talk about those later. The Act doesn't only target high rise buildings, it does introduce special measures for high risk buildings, which are typically tall residential buildings. It also reforms rules for all building work. So in short, whether you're working on a two storey office or a 20 storey apartment block, there are changes you need to know about. And the big theme of the act is accountability. The act establishes clear duty holders during design and construction, and pushes for a culture where safety and compliance are everyone's responsibility, not just an afterthought checked off by an inspector. It also extends legal liability if things go wrong, including longer periods that you can be sued for defects, which can be up to 15 years or even 30 years in some cases. And we'll touch on that too later. So the Building Safety Act is here to shake up the business as usual approach, so it's no longer acceptable to rely on building control to catch mistakes or to assume safety is someone else's job. As one summary put it, from October 23rd onwards, the emphasis is firmly on designers and contractors to ensure compliance with building regs, not on the building control body to find mistakes.
Speaker 1 00:04:08 And that means we've all got to up our game. Next, let's meet some of the key players in this new regime the duty holders. In the old days, you might have left some of the building safety parts to the building inspector, acting almost like a referee to call out your fouls. But now, under the BSA, every team member has duties to ensure that the building complies to result in a winning game. And unsurprisingly, this starts right at the top with the client. They're essentially the project owner or the developer who has overall responsibility to make sure that the project is set up for compliance. Then you have the principal designer. This is a term that we've heard before in terms of CDM, but this is a slightly different responsibility now. they act as the lead designer in charge of the pre-construction phase, ensuring that design complies with the regulations. Then we have the principal contractor, which is the lead contractor in charge of the construction phase, and they again have to ensure that the physical work complies with building regs.
Speaker 1 00:05:18 Then of course, we have other designers and contractors such as yourselves, and you're obligated whether you're executing the work or you're designing certain portions of it to comply with the regs and cooperate with the principal, designer and contractor. Now, of course, those two titles sound familiar because we've seen them in building regs already. But under the Building Safety Act those roles are distinct and they are there just to focus on building regulations, compliance, not just site safety. With their appointment and duties now a legal requirement to impotently on any project that has more than one contractor the client must appoint a principal designer and principal contractor in writing, and if they don't, then by default, the lead designer or contractor becomes the principal designer for the job. So either way, those roles exist in the eyes of the law. The same firm can perform both the CDM Principal Designer and the Building Standards principal designer roles, and both can be both principal designer and principal contractor, as long as they are competent to do so. On a small job, you might end up wearing multiple hats to stay compliant with the law, but you need to ensure that you've got the skills and the paperwork to prove it.
Speaker 1 00:06:40 The principal designer, in short, is the person or organization controlling the design stage, tasked with making sure the building can be built to comply with all building regulations. Under the new regime, the principal designer must plan, manage, monitor and coordinate the design in terms of safety and compliance with those regulations. And that means in terms of ensuring designs are compliant, to take all reasonable steps to verify that each designer's work meets the relevant building regulations, be it structure, fire or accessibility and so on. And if you're the principal designer and your structural engineer proposes something that doesn't meet the regulations, it's your duty to catch it and to get it fixed before things are built. So pressures on then under coordination and communication, facilitating collaboration amongst the design team, the principal designer needs to make sure that architects, engineers and other specialist designers such as fire or M&A consultants and even specialist subcontractors doing design, getting them all working to the same hymn sheet and sharing necessary information. They must also discuss with the principal contractor, how the design will be delivered on site, and consider any feedback the principal contractor gives on build ability or compliance.
Speaker 1 00:08:06 They've then got an ongoing responsibility to provide support to the client and project team, providing relevant information and setting the tone for a safety first design process. They can delegate technical tasks, but legally they still retain that responsibility for the coordination duties. There is also an obligation to make sure if they stop being the principal designer. Let's say an architect decides after obtaining planning permission that they've had enough. Then they have to hand over a full briefing explaining what compliance measures they put in place within 28 days of leaving the development. And there's then a handover to the incoming principal designer, who has to review that document to make sure there's no cracks to fall through. So in other words, the change of guard is now documented. So there's no more shrugging and saying, oh, well, that was the last ice problem. The principal designer also has some additional responsibilities when it comes to higher risk buildings HBS, which include setting up a mandatory occurrence reporting system for serious incidents during construction, and the managing of the golden thread of building information and keeping records to prove that anyone they appoint is competent for their job.
Speaker 1 00:09:25 We'll mention some of the specifics about HBS in a little bit, but let's move on to the principal contractor. This is the building regulations champion, if you like, for the construction stage, if you're a main contractor or even if you're carrying out specialist works, but you're the one that the order is being placed with direct to the client, then this could be you in the eyes of the law. And the principal contractor's job is to plan, manage, monitor and coordinate the building work itself so that everything is done by the book. The book here, of course, meaning the building regulations. And as the principal contractor, you must coordinate all of the subcontractors, making sure that their work is in line with regulations and trying to make sure that subcontractors aren't working at cross-purposes with each other so that their interfaces tie up properly. It's the principal contractor's job to assess the work being done, and not to allow non-compliant work to slip through the net. And in fact, the law says that the principal contractor must never accept work that doesn't meet building regulations.
Speaker 1 00:10:35 So if something isn't right, let's say there's insulation that doesn't meet the fire spec, then the principal contractor has to get that fixed. They aren't just able to leave it to the building inspector to pick up on it, or hope that nobody notices because they know they've got a cheap product in place. They must facilitate Communication and flow of information. They've got to be the overlap between the design and the construction phases. And if a subcontractor proposes a design change on site, then the principal contractor should be looping in the principal designer to make sure that the work's going to be compliant. They should also be ensuring cooperation, taking reasonable steps to ensure that everyone on site, including other contractors and other designers, cooperate and communicate well with each other regarding compliance. There is no more blaming different contractors for not talking to each other. They're there to facilitate that, talking to each other with the common goal of maintaining compliance. They should also be implementing systems to make sure that quality and compliance is monitored. If the principal designer raises a concern with the work, then the principal contractor is obligated to consider that and take action to correct the issue if it needs it, and in a similar fashion to the principal designer.
Speaker 1 00:11:58 If there is a change of main contractor, then the principal contractor has to provide a similar handover document to allow the new principal contractor to pick up the baton. There are duties also for all designers and contractors. So you might be thinking, all right, principal designer and principal contractor have fancy titles and big responsibilities, and I'm just a subcontractor. What's this got to do with me or. Good question. But the act doesn't let the ordinary designers and the people completing the work off the hook at all. In fact, everyone involved in design or building work has general duties to comply with building regs and to cooperate with others. And funnily enough, this starts right at the beginning. So as a subcontractor, you shouldn't start work on a site unless you're satisfied that the client and contractors are aware of their own legal duties before work begins. So if you're about to start a job and it's clear that the client or even the main contractor on their behalf has no principal designer or principal contractor appointed, then that's a big red flag.
Speaker 1 00:13:07 And you're expected not just to plow ahead with the work regardless, but to ask if that governance is in place and that should be sorted out before you start the work. Subcontractors then have a responsibility to take reasonable steps to ensure work that they do, and maybe works that they manage are carried out in accordance with building regs and for documenting the compliance with those regulations. So in simpler terms, you are responsible for doing your job right and then proving it's right. So if you're installing something, you install it to the approved plans and spec and relevant standards. You supervise your team double checking critical areas like fire stopping around pipes or the structural fixings that you're using. You can't assume that somebody else is going to catch your mistakes. You now also have a legal duty to cooperate with the client, principal designer, and principal contractor along with any of the sub designers or contractors that they've appointed to ensure that the whole project complies with regulations. And that might mean picking up the phone to other designing subcontractors to make sure that everything meshes together and remains compliant.
Speaker 1 00:14:20 So the law now expects a team effort rather than the siloed approach of old. You also have a duty to flag up things that don't comply, and that includes if something changes, perhaps in somebody else's work, if it now creates a situation where you might not be compliant, then you have to raise the issue to the principal contractor for the good of not just the whole job, but the people that are going to use the building after you finished it. This kind of communication is not only now expected, but it's protected by the law. Because the law now tells you you must flag it up. You also have an obligation to provide enough information about your work to assist the client, the principal designer and principal contractor in complying with regulations, which might mean handing over product certificates, installation specs, testing regimes and reports, and of course, the usual as built drawings and operational maintenance information. This information contributes towards the golden thread for HBS, and let's face it, that isn't going to right itself, so expect to chip in with your part.
Speaker 1 00:15:31 You're also obligated to supervise and instruct your workers appropriately. This is about ensuring compliance and maintaining the right level of competence on the ground, particularly doing key tasks that are related to fire ratings. The law also expects you to vet your subcontractors to make sure that they are competent for the work at hand, and that you don't accept work that's beyond your own level of competency, explicitly telling you you must refuse to carry out work if you lack the skills, knowledge, experience and behavior to do it right. And it empowers you to say no. If you're asked to do something that would cut a corner and violate building standards, the thought being, it's better to have an awkward conversation now than an enforcement letter or another disaster later. So under the BSA regulations, everyone has skin in the game. And it's not just for the principal designer and contractor to check what you're doing, but you should be checking your work yourself, ensuring that you're compliant and having the documentation to back that up. So there is now a structure of multiple duty holders all checking and coordinating and cooperating with each other to make sure mistakes are caught early or prevented altogether.
Speaker 1 00:16:51 That might seem like there's just more paperwork and more coordination meetings. But these aren't by accident. It's by design, and it's now by the law. And remember that the building safety regulator, part of the HSE, can enforce against individuals who are responsible for failures. They can issue compliance notices saying, basically, fix this by this date and even stop notices to say stop work now until this is fixed. If they find that breaches of building regs have incurred ignoring one of these notices is a criminal offence and fines can be unlimited and even amount to two years imprisonment, which I'm fairly safe to assume that nobody will want. So of course, it's much better to play by the rules from the start then to end up in that situation. So we've covered who's responsible for what in general terms. So let's talk about approvals and especially what happens when you're dealing with those hrb high risk buildings. So for high risk buildings, the building safety regulator is now in charge of vetting those projects. And these are essentially either high rise residential or similarly complex buildings.
Speaker 1 00:18:07 You've now no longer got the opportunity to shop around and choose between local authority or a private approved inspector. It now goes through the BSR, and now construction cannot begin until the BSR is approved. The building control application for the project, now referred to as passing gateway two. In practice, the client and principal contractor and principal designer will have submitted a mountain of design and planning documents to the regulator, and they will now need the regulator's green light to start building. So there's no more start on site, with just an initial notice in place and a bit of a nod to sort out the details later. HBS require formal approval upfront, So you might notice as a subcontractor that there are longer leading. Times before work starts on site and once on site. Certain key stages require sign off before proceeding, which culminates in a final completion certificate. Gateway three from the BSR. When construction is finished, a high risk building can't be occupied, so absolutely no one can move in until the BSR is satisfied with everything being built correctly and that the building is properly registered with them.
Speaker 1 00:19:25 For you, this might mean further pauses in between work stages, and a bigger wait for the final certificates to be issued, as it now requires that third party check to make sure all the eyes are dotted and the t's crossed. Building control can still be done by local authorities or private inspectors, now known as registered building Control approvals for non hrb projects or normal buildings if you like. However, there have been changes in this field as well, and that looks like a new unified system of notices and applications and a stricter approach to enforcement for all building work. And that means that other than for simple domestic jobs, you're likely going to have to go through a full plans approval process before things can start to be built. And from a subcontractors perspective, even on smaller jobs, you might see more insistence on approved plans and specs up front. So if you're used to a bit of design on the fly or sketchy detail and go, then expect there to be more pushback. The authorities want to see more detailed plans and calculations submitted and approved under the new system, especially for HBS.
Speaker 1 00:20:41 If the design needs to change mid build, perhaps for a material substitute or a layout tweak, there is now a change control process that informs the BSR of any significant differences and it might even need their Re approval. So if you run out of a specified product and you want to swap in an alternative, don't be surprised when the principal contractor and principal designer slam the brakes on and tell you we need to get that approved before we proceed. This can be a bit of a mindset shift, and there are processes for notifying later and confirming changes if absolutely necessary. And we're only talking urgent situations. But the key here is that you need to be transparent and proactive with it. Changes should be documented in a change control log. That's part of the golden thread. The PSR and local authorities have more muscle now to enforce compliance. As I mentioned earlier, they can issue compliance notices to require fixes by a given deadline and stop notices to halt work for serious breaches for HBS, the BSR will likely be very hands on, so expect a more rigorous inspection routine for other projects.
Speaker 1 00:21:57 Local authority inspectors may also become less lenient because the law backs them up with new tools to enforce that compliance. And alongside that, there is now a dispute and appeal process about building control decisions, which will go generally to a tribunal to make a decision. So this shifts the onus directly to you as a subcontractor to ensure that your work and your documents are up to scratch. If something you did doesn't meet requirements, there's a higher chance now that it will be flagged and you'll be asked to fix it. And the project could even be stopped until it's fixed. So it's much better and much cheaper to do it right the first time. They'll redo that work under a compliance notice. Be prepared for more paperwork. If you're designing, this might be detailed installation plans and certificates, and that should include your own compliance evidence for work that you've completed. So make that part of your own workflow to produce and organize it. And remember here it's in everybody's interest to follow the process properly. So you can't put pressure on the principal contractor to cover up work or to close in things that need inspecting and move on.
Speaker 1 00:23:14 It's in everyone's interest to get the proper approvals, to do the right inspections and to document things as you go. That might be frustrating when you just want to finish a task, but a little patience here can save a lot of hassle and a potential legal violation. Existing buildings are also affected by the BSA regs, as all existing high rise residential buildings are now required to be registered with BSR, and the owners are treated as accountable persons and they must actively manage safety within that building. So if you're doing refurb or maintenance work in an occupied hrb. Be aware that you might need to coordinate with that accountable person, and it's not just doing a quick job and leaving. They have duties to maintain, a safety case for the building and any work that you do, perhaps replacing fire doors, altering services, etc. will likely need to feed into that. So all of this is introducing a bit of an administrative burden to you as a subcontractor. And let's be honest, a lot of us in construction prefer being involved in the work and the paperwork surrounding it.
Speaker 1 00:24:26 But the BSA world runs on documents and evidence, so this might require you to adapt your approach. That might mean additional staff to support the administration of records, or it might mean ensuring your site supervisor has got the time to compile them. And this is where technology can help you as well, because there are apps and technology to help you document, inspect and and arrange those documents in a sensible order, and all that can be done on a simple site visit, provided that you've got things set up properly. That golden thread has got to be provided for high risk buildings, and that means thorough inspections and paperwork to back them up. Think about this when you're pricing your work because it's not an option to skip it. Compliance here isn't just about avoiding the regulators, it's about civil liability as well, because the BSA has made it easier for building owners to bring action against people who've caused a default and left them with a non-compliant building. This means that insurances have got more expensive, and this is inevitably another cost that you will have to pick up and charge out to your employers.
Speaker 1 00:25:39 You'll also notice that likely main contractors are changing their conditions now to push the requirements of the BSA down to you as its key supply chain members. And this, again, is something that is likely started at the top. The clients have farmed out their responsibility and now the main contractor, not wanting to hold too many babies at once, is pushing it down to you who's doing the work. But in this instance, I can understand that because the requirements of the law now are that this is a team effort, that everybody does their bit to ensure compliance. Together we get over the line and together we avoid being sued, something I'm quite keen on. Now, you're not alone in your struggles here. Organizations like the Federation of Master Builders, the National Federation of Builders and Specialists, trade organisations for the likes of electrical, plumbing, fire, petitions all of these places offer guidance notes, template documents and some of them even helplines for members. These are a good place to turn to for advice and for succinct guidance on what you need to do to achieve the standards.
Speaker 1 00:26:49 There's also the building safety regulator's own documents. They're not just acting as a regulator here. They're trying to get people to comply. So their website has lots of sections for duty holders and FAQs, downloadable guides and so on. There's also a forum for you to gather feedback and liaise with other trades who are in the same boat as you. Engaging with that could give you a voice, and it might also give you an early insight into future changes. Plan your projects with safety and compliance in mind, setting out from the start with a clear directive to your site supervisor and then to your operatives as well, that you need to comply with these rules and provide documents to back that up is the way that you need to approach it. There is no creating evidence of something that's already been closed up and moved on from, so you've got to do that as the work unfolds, programme it in and embrace it. Because let's face it, taking a photo at the right time is a lot cheaper than breaking something open to prove that it's there.
Speaker 1 00:27:56 And don't be scared to ask questions if something that you think is important is lacking detail on a design, then you're almost certain to be right and flagging up something like this fire barrier detail isn't clear on your drawing. There's a little flag to get an issue resolved before it causes a big problem, and that's what this legislation is all about. It's taking really seriously a disaster that's happened and trying to prevent a similar thing from happening again. And yes, there might be more bureaucracy, but it's there to prevent tragedy, to build trust with your clients, and to help you ultimately secure more work, because your firm will be shown as reliable and compliant. And so thanks for tuning in to today's show. I hope we've got something useful out of that. If you want some more information. There's a wealth of guidance on Gov.uk and most of it unlike a JCT contract, is written in fairly plain English. That would be a good place to start. As well as industry bodies such as the CIB and CIBC that have some great resources for you to learn from.
Speaker 1 00:29:04 And thanks for tuning in. My mission with the show is to help the million SME contractors working out there in our industry. If you've taken some value away from today's show, I'd love it if you'd share this episode and pass that value on to somebody else who'd benefit from hearing it. And of course, subscribe yourself if you haven't already. Don't forget, you can also find us at www.QS.Zone for more information. We're also on all your favorite socials again at @QS.Zone. Thanks again! I've been Jacob Austin and you've been awesome!
